In the production of steel, it is common practice to perform distinct process steps either in the same vessel or to perform a first portion of the process in one vessel and a second portion in a separate vessel. For example, electric arc furnaces are commonly employed to melt scrap or ores and to then further process the melt in the arc furnace or in a converter, such as a BOF vessel. The melt down period in an electric arc furnace is generally the most expensive in terms of both power and electrode consumption. In order to minimize the duration of the melt down period, one prior art practice was to preheat the scrap before charging. The use of multiple vessels to process steel melts has not been wholly satisfactory because it involves costly additional handling and equipment.